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Kosovo is a region in southern Serbia, which has been under United Nations administration since 1999. It is situated in the central part of the Balkans. In the Southwest, it is bordered by Albania, in the West by Montenegro, in the North by Central Serbia and in the East and Southeast by the Republic of Macedonia.
The territory extends within longitudes 41° 50’ 58’’ and 43° 15’ 42’’ and within latitudes 20° 01’ 30’’ and 21° 48’ 02’’
Kosovo covers a surface area of approximately 10,900 km² and is characterised by an average altitude of 800 m above sea level, but showing vertical changes of relief and morphology. These morphological changes are a consequence of the geological setting. The lowest point of Kosovo is located at an elevation of 297 m (Drini i Bardhë/Beli Drim, at the border to Albania). The country rises up to the highest point in the South of Kosovo – Djeravicë/Gjeravica at 2,565 m.
From the geographical point of view, Kosovo can be subdivided into two large regional flat units, after ÇAVOLLI: The north-eastern part is referred to as "Rrafshi i Kosovës", the south-western part as "Rrafshi i Dukagjinit". They are characterised by special climatic-geographical conditions. For instance, several subunits like Drenica, Novobërdës dhe Gollakut, Fusha e Kosovës, Fusha e Moravë, Podujevë et al. are distinguished.
The border between Rrafshi i Dukagjinit and Rrafshi i Kosovës forms the surface water divide between the Adriatic Sea on the one side and the Black Sea and Aegean Sea on the other side.
Kosovo is surrounded by several high mountain ranges. The northern part is occupied by the Kopaonik mountains (above 2,000 m), which are characterised by abrasive activity, both fluvial and glacial. In the southern and south-western part of Kosovo, at the border to Macedonia, the Mali i Sharrit/Šar Planina mountains are located (above 2,500 m). The western part of Kosovo (border to Albania) includes parts of the Alpet Shqipatare/Albanian Alps mountains and the Mali i Moknes/Mokra Gora mountains (border to Montenegro). These areas are characterised by rocky material, high mountains and deep gorges.
In the central part of Kosovo, western and north-western of Prishtinë/Priština, the mountain ranges Bjeshket e Çiçavice/Čičavica and Golesh/Goleš, Carralevë/Crnoljeva and Milanovc/Milanovac are located, which are characterised by karstic forms, both fluvial and abrasive, rising to elevations of about 1,000 m.
The part of Kosovo, which is characterised by far flat areas, covers a surface of approx. 36 % of the country territory. These basins are characterised by elevations between 400 and 700 m above sea level.

Contents

Clima

Hydrology

People

Infrastructure

Clima

The climate of Kosovo is predominantly continental, resulting in warm summers and cold winters with Mediterranean and Alpine influences (average temperature within the country range from +30 °C (summer) to –10 °C (winter)). However, due to unequal elevations in certain parts of the country, there are differences in temperature and rainfall distribution.
December and January are regarded as the coldest months, July and August as the warmest months of the year. The maximum rainfall rate is reached between October and December. Between November and March, snowfall can be expected in Kosovo, even in the flat parts of the country. The highest snowfall rates can be expected in the mountain regions of Kosovo.
The valley between Mitrovicë/Mitrovica and Kaçanik/Kačanik belongs to the dryer areas of the country. In contrast, the plain of Dukagjini between Pejë/Peć and Prizren is described as a very fertile area with more precipitation between November and March.
Based on the climate conditions, Kosovo can be separated into three climatic areas:
Climatic Area of Kosovo (Rrafshi i Kosovës),
Climatic Area of Dukagjini (Rrafshi i Dukagjinit) and
Climatic Area of mountains and forest parts.
The climatic area of Kosovo (Rrafshi i Kosovës), which includes the Ibar-Valley, is influenced by continental air masses. For this reason, in this part of the country, the winters are colder with medium temperatures above –10 °C, but sometimes down to –26 °C. The summers are very hot with average temperatures of 20 °C, sometimes up to 37 °C. This area is characterised by a dry climate and a total annual precipitation of 600 mm per year, approximately.
The climatic area of Dukagjini (Rrafshi i Dukagjinit), which includes the watershed of the Drini i Bardh river, is influenced very much by the hot air masses, which cross the Adriatic Sea. Medium temperatures during winter range from 0.5 °C to sometimes 22.8 °C. The average annual precipitation of this climatic area is about 700 mm per year. The winter is characterised by heavy snowfalls.
The climatic area of the mountains and forest parts is characterised by a typical forest clime, that is associated with heavy rainfalls (900 to 1,300 mm per year), and summers that are very short and cold, and winters that are cold and with a lot of snow.
Finally, it can be stated that the Kosovo territory is characterised by a sunny climate with variable temperature and humidity conditions.

Hydrology

There are many rivers in Kosovo, which flow toward the Adriatic Sea, the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea. The main rivers in Kosovo are: Drini i Bardhë/Beli Drim (in the southern part of Kosovo – flows into the Adriatic Sea), Lumi i Ibarit/Ibar (in the north-western part, flows into the Morava and Danube/Dunav and further into the Black Sea) and Lepencë/Lepenac (in the south-eastern part, flows into the Vardar-River toward the Aegean Sea). More interesting, the Black Sea is drained by water from a surface water catchment area of 5,500 km², or 51 % of the Kosovo territory, the Adriatic Sea is drained by an area of 4,500 km², or 43 %, and the Aegean Sea is drained by an area of only 900 km², or 6 %.
The watersheds of the three main drainages (Drini i Bardhë/Beli, Lumi i Ibarit/Ibar and Lepencë/Lepenac) are touching each other approximately 16.5 km west of Ferizaj/Uroševac, in the cadastral zone of Budakovë/Budakovo (municipality Suharekë/Suva Reka). At this contact point of the three watersheds, the mountain Drmanska is located, reaching an elevation of 1,359 m above sea level. From here, the surface water flows towards the Adriatic Sea, the Black Sea or the Aegean Sea.
Other important rivers in Kosovo are: Sitnicë/Sitnica, Morava e Bisnecës/Binačka Morava, Bistrica e Pejës/Pećka Bistrica and Bistrica e Deçanit/Dečanska Bistrica. Kosovo also does have a large number of karst springs, thermal and mineral water springs, glacial valleys and lakes and artificially made lakes.

People

About 1.9 million people are living in Kosovo (Statistical Office of Kosovo). The predominant part of the population mainly lives in the areas of the fertile lowlands. However, there are numerous settlements up in the difficult accessible parts of the country, in the mountain ranges. Approximately 35 % of the population lives in towns. More than 50 % of the people are less than 30 years old.
The majority of the population are Albanians (approx. 92%). Beside them, there are several minorities like the Serbs, Turks, Montenegrins, Bosnians and Ashkali people. The beneficial geographical position of Kosovo is reflected in its multicultural function.

Infrastructure

The country’s infrastructure is well developed. A fully developed road network does exist and, in general, the roads are in good conditions. There are several main roads connecting the large towns of Kosovo and its territory with the neighbouring countries. There are railway tracks to Macedonia and Serbia, but the railway system does not operate regularly at the moment. Regular international air links are provided from across Europe to Priština, the capital of Kosovo.